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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. wind — moving air
  3. tube — the underground
  4. chair — a leader
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. pop — music
  7. pop — to visit
  8. vault — a safe
  9. wind — moving air
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mine — for digging
  14. tube — a container
  15. pop — soda
  16. season — in sport
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. snap — to click
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. season — of the year
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. tube — in a tire

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com